Dolphin Stories

Record Paradise: The Musical Life of Joe Lee follows Lee through his off-kilter musical world. A product of two of Maryland's seminal families -- the Lees and the Blairs -- Joe was kicked out of prep school and rejected the world of politics and business that so many in his family embraced. Instead, he opened a record store in the early 1970s, which soon became a hub of music and the counterculture. Joe leads the camera from the warm and diverse community in his record store to the basements, stages, galleries and recording studios where he and the music of Baltimore and Washington coincide.

Filming for the documentary began on-location in Baltimore, Maryland during the summer of 2010. Streissguth and students spent long hours together for weeks on end, working hard to capture the best footage of Lee in his natural environment. They later rummaged through that content, putting the pieces together to create the phenomenal final product that is now Record Paradise. Streissguth and student Luke Baker worked closely on the editing process.

“I didn’t know him that well going into the shooting of Record Paradise, but you spend enough hours in the car with someone you get to know them,” says Baker.

Back in New York, the two edited video footage together every Monday, though come noon, it was time for lunch. The duo hunted down the best burrito joints in the city of Syracuse. The winner? Wegmans.

Although hours of hard work were dedicated to the success of this project, the crew did find time to take a break, relax and hang out with the quirky Joe Lee. Stories were shared, skills were perfected and friendships formed, while these students became part of something huge for the Le Moyne community, part of a new kind of family.

The Buffalo Niagara Film Festival and the Memphis International Music and Film Festival selected the film for screening in April 2012.

Dolphins are smart. Dolphins are creative. Dolphins are filmmakers. Dolphins are FAMILY.